“Flygskam,” the new UK movement to shame people out of flying

From The Independent: Hear the word flygskam out of context, and you’d be forgiven for mistaking it for the next big Scandavian lifestyle craze, following in the snuggly, good-vibes footsteps of hygge and lykke.

But this latest trend is more about tackling climate change than getting cosy – here’s everything you need to know about the anti-flying movement that’s sweeping northern Europe.

What is flygskam?

This Swedish word literally translates as “flight shame”. It’s the name of an anti-flying movement that originated in Sweden last year, which encourages people to stop taking flights to lower carbon emissions.

The idea was originally championed by Olympic athlete Bjorn Ferry and gained momentum after teenage activist Greta Thunberg’s mother, the opera singer Malena Ernman, publicly announced she would stop flying, with various Swedish celebrities following suit. Thunberg herself travelled largely by train during her recent two-week tour of Europe.

Exact numbers are hard to estimate, but the Tagsemester Facebook page, set up by entrepreneur and environmentalist Susanna Elfors to give people tips and information on how to cut back on air travel in favour of rail travel, has around 80,000 active users.

“When Malena Ernman said, ‘No, I am not flying anymore,’ people thought, ‘Oh, if she can do that, I can also stop flying,’“ Elfors told The World.

“Some famous people after her also said, ‘I am not going to fly. And then people started to change their travel habits, and it became shameful to go by plane because it’s so devastating for the environment and for the climate.”

Is it having an impact?

In Sweden, definitely. There’s been a spike in rail travel over the last couple of years as the movement has picked up momentum.

Elfors said: “They have been putting in new train departures because the interest has increased here in Sweden, and also domestic flying has decreased. So, it’s really changing.”

The industry has taken notice too. At its recent annual meeting in Seoul, International Air Transport Association (IATA), the trade association for the world’s airlines, focused a lot on how to combat flygskam and anti-flying feeling.

”Unchallenged, this sentiment will grow and spread,“ said Alexandre de Juniac, head of the IATA, while addressing the event’s 150 or so CEOs.

Climate change activists Extinction Rebellion recently announced plans to disrupt flights to and from London Heathrow this summer by using drones.(Sounds rather illegal and dangerous to me.)

Nor will this stop Green New Deal proponents Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie “I’m socialist but so what if I’m a millionaire” Sanders, other “pro-environment” Demonrats, and “we must have a global government to combat climate change” Pope Francis.

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3 months ago

Member

William

This is so stupid. What a surprise. I think Sweden has more pressing problems than “Climate Change”, like the fact that Stockholm is now the rape capital of Europe. How did that happen? In my town they are already saving the planet from plastic grocery bags and elevators, I decided to get ahead of the curve and stop breathing. I keep passing out though. I guess I’m not trying hard enough. Shame on me. A new movement, Breathing Shame. How do you say that in Swedish?

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3 months ago

Guest

Anne M. Berg

Pusteskam

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3 months ago

Member

William

Really? Thank you. We want Puteskam to catch on with the Kool Kidz just like hygge and lykke